Lavrov: US sanctions on Iran, Syria harming Russian business

US sanctions
on Syria
and Iran are harming Russian business interests, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Saturday.

"Unilateral US sanctions against Syria and Iran
are increasingly becoming extra-territorial in nature and are touching upon the interests of Russian business," Lavrov said after meeting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Financial Vice

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The United States has imposed wide-ranging financial sanctions against the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program in an attempt to starve Tehran of revenue, and pressed other countries to cut their imports of Iranian oil.

Washington has also frozen the assets of more than 100 members of the Syrian regime and barred US firms from doing business with them. It has also slapped sanctions on the Syrian state oil firm Sytrol last month.

Russia has been staunchly opposed to sanctions against Syria, and has vetoed several UN Security Council resolutions targeting Syrian President Bashar Assad.

"In Syria we are not supporting any sanctions because sanctions will not bring about anything," Lavrov told reporters on the sidelines of the annual APEC summit that Russia is hosting in the port city of Vladivostok.

US-Russia ties

Clinton has said during the conference that the US.Congress may move this month to upgrade trade relations with Russia, a key part of the Obama administration's effort to bolster sometimes strained ties with Moscow and open the Russian market to more US companies.

Clinton said on Saturday the Obama administration was working closely with Congress on lifting the 1974 Jackson-Vanik amendment, Cold War-era legislation which has blocked normal trade privileges for Russia.

"To make sure our companies get to compete here in Russia, we are working closely with the United States congress to terminate the application to Jackson-Vanik to Russia and grant Russia permanent normalized trade relations," Clinton said.

"We hope that the Congress will act on this important piece of legislation this month."